Goals are important. Without them it's really hard to anchor our time.

When we make a to do list, that's a goal. When we set out to lose weight with a number in mind, that's a goal.

Why not deal with finance the same way?

Jason and I are currently saving to buy a house. Ideally we would love to just pay cash for a home. But I am not sure that is going to pan out. So we are saving for a big down payment. It is the largest savings goal we have ever had.

We decided in February of this year what that number would be and estimated how long it would take us to get there.

We've made great progress. But we've also had some setbacks.

We forgot to plan for life.

Yes, we budgeted, but we still found ourselves dealing with some situations we weren't as prepared for as we should have been. We had the money in savings to deal with it, but if we had taken a more proactive approach we could have made provisions and continued to on track of meeting our goal within the time frame we had given ourselves.

Life happens and we can't stop it.

What are some things we can do to reach our savings goals? Well here are a few things that we have done.

1. Make your goals realistic. Chances are you're not going to save $10,000 in six months. (Well maybe you are!) So you have to set goals that won't leave you feeling discouraged and disappointed.

Unrealistic goals just set you up to get off track.

2. Make sacrifices. Look at where you're spending your money and see where there are things you can out.

We cut out cable two years ago and we save $75 a month. That is $900 a year!

3. Visualize your savings. I know a lady who has a chart in her home. She scribbles on the chart in red and it's good visual reminder of her progress. She can clearly see daily the goals she has met and how far she has left to go.

4. Take a break! Recently I had to be honest with Jason. I felt like ALL we talked about were our savings goals and our budget. I told Jason that I needed to take a step back. We continued on our goal, but it didn't become something we talked about daily when Jason sat down to balance the checkbook.

When it is a primary focus it becomes a distraction. Money should NEVER be a primary focus. Ever!

5. Discipline. Ugh! This one is hard. I am a chubby lady who loves to spend money. Clearly discipline is my strength.

But the Bible says (Hebrews 12:11) "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."

I want to be righteous and peaceful. Don't you?

There are things you want or things you think you need but you have to say no to them.

It's okay! There is light at the end of the tunnel. You're going to reach your goals and these temporary sacrifices probably don't mean that much.

Frugal Debt Free Life

Frugal Debt Free Life is a blog for those looking to get out of debt, stay out of debt, save money and live a more simplistic life style.

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